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Chapter Five
Vampires Werewolves Mages Promethians The Lead Poisoned Night Background The Night is cursed, cursed to sail forever never finding a home. It's true but it's also just how things are when you're a Promethian. Captain Seven Ages of Man, just Seven Ages of Man in those days, was a follower of Aurum. He attempted to reach the New Dawn through acts of charity and kindness and every time those he wished to help repaid him with Disquiet. Something snapped in the young Golem and he renounced all contact with humanity. Even then he was impressively persuasive and convinced his throng of his new vision. They stole a ship to be their new home, a home that could travel with them ahead of the wasteland, ahead of disquiet, ahead of everything. Description Captain Seven Ages of Man appears as an young man. He favours a pea coat with a fisherman's cap and is never seen without his corncob pipe in which he smokes a brew of his own devising made from seaweed. When his disfigurement's show the Captain appears to have mummified from too much sea air, so much salt has piled up in his body that entire patches of his skin have calcified. Secrets Abandoning dry land may have been the worst decision Captain Seven Ages of Man ever made. He's a good man, he's led his Throng to a safe stable life and he always has room on-board to help a fellow Created but while he has helped other Created move towards their own Mortality he and his throng have stalled in their quest. Seven Ages of Man knows this, he is plagued by dreams that call him back to Aurum but even after all these years he still cannot face humans, he cannot face torment. Every time the dreams end he calls himself a fool and a coward, then he sails onwards cursed to do so by no one but himself. Storytelling Hints If he can help it Captain Seven Ages of Man will only allow another Promethian upon his ship, normal humans still make him very uncomfortable and even other supernaturals can be affected by Disquiet. However if he spots one adrift or trapped on an island his morals won't let him ignore them. He would however be comfortable with locking them in a cabin – for their own safety. It's a sensible precaution but that doesn’t stop it being terrifying. To a fellow Promethean he's chatty, kind and willing, perhaps even eager, to offer help on the Pilgrimage. A sort of voyeuristic Pilgrimage by proxy. At first he comes across as happy with his life filled with tails of storms weathered, near misses and weird encounters upon the sea. As the conversation progresses little hints of his inner turmoil appear, talk of mortals causes his ears to perk up perhaps even a little too much and his diatribes about the unfairness of disquiet seem to be aimed at himself more than anyone. Captain Seven Ages of Man '''Attributes:''' Intelligence 3, Wits 2, Resolve 4, Strength 4, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3, Presence 3, Manipulation 2, Composure 2. '''Skills:''' Crafts 3 (shipwright), Medicine 1, Occult 1, Science 2 (Navigation), Athletics 2, Drive 3 (Sailing) Firearms 1, Survival 2 (Ocean), Weaponry 1, Animal Ken 2, Empathy 4 (Throng), Intimidation 1, Persuasion 4 (Throng), Socialise 1 (Promethians). '''Lineage:''' Frankenstein '''Bestowment:''' Unholy Strength '''Refinement:''' Aes '''Athanor:''' Ant '''Azoth:''' 3 '''Humanity:''' 7 '''Defence:''' 2 '''Health:''' 8 '''Size:''' 5 '''Speed:''' 10 '''Initiative:''' 6 '''Willpower:''' 6 '''Merits:''' Danger Sense (2), Direction Sense (1), Elpis (1), Repute (2), Sheppard (4), Weatherproof (1). Transmutations: Alchemiucs — Forging the Master's Tools (•), Fortification (••), Transformation (•••), Alteration (•••), Persistant Change (••••); Benefice — Helping Hand (•), Many Hands Make Light Work (•), Share Pyros (••), Able Worker (•••), The Community of Power (••••), The Fortified Compact (•••••); Consortium — Never Too Far (•), My Brother’s Burden (••), We are One (•••), Unspoken Words (••••), What’s Mine is Yours (•••••); Corporeum — Autonomic Control (•), Ingrained Reflexes (••), Uncanny Dexterity (••); Deception — Color of Man (•); Metamorphosis — Blessing of Tethys (••); Sensorium — Bloodhound’s Nose (•), Weather Eye (•), Nightsight(••); Vitality — Might (••). Scurvy Sea Dogs and Fair Mermaidens: Changelings and Fae First Flower Cove Background Imagine the Changelings who first crossed the Atlantic, bringing the Seasonal Courts to a uncharted frontiers. What will they find when they pushed back the borders of the map? Trade: Assuredly, danger: Most likely, dragons: probably not. Even as the ships first set sail powerful interests began to form around the new venture. The Spring Court saw new opportunities while the Silent Arrow sought to move transportation away from the prying eyes of the Gentry. Together Spring and Winter formed a joint venture, the First Flower Compact named for the crossing of the two Seasons. The Winter Courters were well versed in the arts of secrecy and security. They found a hidden cave, large enough to sail a ship and asked it for entrance. They began building and warding a Hollow on that very spot. The followers of the Antler Crown, freshly returned from America, contributed their magic to the endeavour. It certainly wasn't easy but soon this simple Hollow had a doorway on two continents. That was supposed to be it. One Hollow, two Doors and a very nice shortcut across the ocean. Subsequent generations added to it. Smugglers needing to hide their contraband were the first, First Flower Cove was such a convenient location it would be a shame to let it go to waste. The merchants followed shortly afterwords building their own warehouses and even piers for unloading. Once sailors were beginning to spend extended periods the siren call of customers began to attract more permanent establishments. The Hobs came later, by the time they arrived First Flower Cove was a small town in it's own right, there were just too many people coming and going to keep the secret. Description First Flower Cove is a sea town of about one hundred homes nestled in a small cove at the base of white cliffs. The entire Hollow is permanently in the bosom of a warm moonlit night and glows with bonfires and well lit homes. The air smells of cheep booze. The population is around two thirds hobs, most of which resemble Ogres or Wizened. The rest are divided equally between Changeling and Mortal. Some – more the mortals than the Changelings – are slaves in name or in practice. The others are here because no one else would have them. They're criminals on the run, vagabonds with nowhere else to go and generally the dregs of society. Rounding off the population is a small smattering of miscellanea, Vampires, Hybirds, Sin-Eaters and even odder inhabitants of the World of Darkness. Most wear First Flower Cove's traditional attire: A random mismatch of different sailors attire from the 16th to the mid 19th century. The town itself was built by smugglers and it looks it: The buildings ramshackle held together by jury rigged repairs, spit and Glamour. The streets are a disorganised jumble, sometimes it seems every other building is a cheep seedy bar or a brothel. You can't go two streets without seeing drunken revelry or drunken violence. Vice is certainly the backbone of the economy. The docks are calmer than the rest of the town, settled under a peace enforced by the watchful eyes of the captains. The dockyards do a surprisingly stable trade in sailing supplies. Everything from iron cannon balls to bunker fuel is sold. Local craftsmen are willing and able to work on any ship for a price. Wood, metal or other. Most of the visiting sailors are hobs, arriving from some other part of the hedge but there's usually a couple of Changeling ships in town and even ordinary mortals; smugglers, drug runners, aged sailors versed in the sea's folklore and even spies all take a short cut through First Flower Cove. Not all make port though. Storytelling Hints Tales of grandiose daring and adventure are very much a part of Changeling: the Lost. This is true as true upon the waves as it is on land. The golden age of such sailors myth was the age of sail, when ships were crewed by men with the strength of their backs and the wind at their tail. The lost can be delightfully anachronistic at times and generally favour stories over logic, it would be little surprise to see Changelings go to see decked out in tricorn hats and First Flower Cove exists to facilitate this kind of story. It's a place a Lost would be sailor can sign onto a ship, a captain can find a crew and no matter your rank it's a place to trade rumours, stories, discoveries, plot hooks and get very very drunk. The cove services nicely as the central hub for an ocean set story. Anyone can catch a glimpse of it while lost at sea in fog while it's many Doors mean that it's located in several oceans at once. It's a place that can tie characters together with shared stories of the one time they saw it's lights in the fog and where salty sailors from all over the world can bump elbows. Even landlubbers may wish to visit, with all the smugglers and people from exotic corners of the world and beyond there's a lot of goods and contraband passing through. While First Flower Cove can't rival a true Goblin Market (at least not usually, travelling Goblin Markets do visit) the inhabitants are mostly sailors not merchants. Even when they're sober they couldn't match the Goblin Merchants skill at bargaining, and they're probably not sober. A skilled negotiator will probably have a much easier time getting a good deal, if someone has what they want. First Flower Cove '''Hollow''' '''Size:''' 5, an entire town and some surounding environs. '''Amenities 2:''' Affluence varies, some people live in abject poverty (Amenities 0) while others are quite well off (Amenities 3), the average though is Amenities 2. '''Wards 4:''' Approach by land requires descending sheer cliffs by way of a small trail to reach the cove, entrance from the hedge sea is protected by perpetual fog and treacherous reefs. '''Workshop 1:''' Shipwrights. '''Mobile Hollow 1:''' The entire cove even vanishes once a month, every new moon, and reappears at the bottom of some other Hedge cliff First Flower Cove has '''Doors 5''', it's entrances are: *From the Hedge by land, a small trail from the top of the cliff. Semi-wild hobgoblin rooster like birds live along the cliffs and when they sight an intruder their crows are loud enough to be heard across the entire cove. *From the Hedge by sea. The path is hidden by perpetual fog and studded with sharp reefs. *From western Ireland. The original entrance is a sea cave large enough for a modest ship to sail into. The key is to throw a personal effect of a drowned sailor into the water and shout “And I hope you choke on him!”. This is called The First Door. *From eastern seaboard of North America you can reach First Flowers Cove by sailing between a large natural arch. Because the key is to sail through the arch with an Anchor on the sea bed (a slack chain is fine) this is called The Locker Door. *From the Caribbean there is an entrance from another sea cave. The cave is in treacherous waters and the key is to sail in while blindfolded and blind drunk earning it the name Dead Man's Door. (This is stupid enough to reduce characters to an automatic Chance Die. Everyone who uses this door Successfully has some supernatural edge like the Beneficent Fate Clause) *From the south of Turkey you can sail into a natural cove. The captain must lead the crew in a toast to “Wine, Women and Welcomes” followed by firing the guns in salute. The crew will experience a sensation not unlike deja vu and realise what they thought was natural rock is infact the town. This is called The Customer's Door. *The final door is from South East China and is found in the entrance to an inlet. To open the gate you only need to flick a bronze coin into the sea and touch your hat respectfully. For obsucre and probably nonsense reasons this is called the Washerwoman's Door. '''Ritual Door:''' There is one final way to get entrance for First Flower Cove. Finding the Door is surprisingly easy, you just need to be lost in fog at sea. Sailing around randomly for a short while with any navigation equipment turned off is enough. This will make the cove appear as lights in the distance. Actually reaching it is harder to pull of by dumb luck. You must poor alcohol, the cheaper the better, on a mechanical compass. It's needle will guide you to the cove, in a direction that has no relation to where you can see it. Sin-Eaters and Giests Hunters Slashers Harsh Mistresses: Spirits Pad Sag-Ur '''Quote:''' “second to the right, and straight on till morning” '''Background:''' For as long as people wished to get from A to B they have had to navigate. The Navigation Choir is one of the oldest Choirs of conceptual spirits and years of predation have brought many related aspects into their folds. '''Description:''' Most Pad Sag-Ur have preyed on related Spirits such as map spirits or compass spirits. By integrating the essence of a more physically attuned spirit they take it's form as their own. Pure navigation spirits often resemble a globe adorned with navigation markings. When they give directions a Pad Sag-Ur animates. A compass needle points or a map draws the route. '''Storytelling Hints:''' Pad Sag-Ur wants you to find your way, it feeds on it, it lives for it. For a small dollop of Chiminage it will happily give you directions, a little more and you get yourself a guide. Barring magical veiling Pad Sag-Ur can reliably find it's way to anywhere in the same dimension as itself. Even when it's powers fail Pad Sag-Ur is very good at finding places the old fashioned way. Pad Sag-Ur Many Pad Sag-Ur have consumed enough related Spirits to gain a second influence but the Spirit presented below is the bear bones version. For the deluxe model add the Greater Influence Numina with an appropriate influence such as: maps, landmarks or GPS systems. '''Rank:''' 2 '''Attributes:''' Power, 3, Finesse 4, Resistance: 2. '''Corpus:''' 5 '''Essence:''' 10 (15 Max) '''Willpower:''' 5 '''Initiative:''' 6 '''Defence:''' 4 '''Speed:''' 17 '''Size:''' 3 '''Influences:''' Navigation 2. '''Numina:''' Chorus, Fetter, Gauntlet Breach, Pathfinder '''Ban''' Pad Sag-Ur can never deceive another on the subject of navigation. This includes lies of omission and misdirection. It may flatly state it refuses to give an answer and may make an honest mistake. If one suspects it might be making a mistake ask clearly how confident it is in it's directions. Lil Badur '''Quote:''' Drown your tears in me, my dear. As you drown, my dear, in me. Background Drowning isn't exactly nice but at the very last moment it can feel almost, pleasant. Lil Badur are born from that last moment, the euphoria felt on the cusp from death. They were born for it, they live for it, and given the chance they'll make you die for it. Description Lil Badurs resemble slightly bloated waterlogged corpses. Most appear dressed in appropriate clothing, from sailors uniforms to swimming trunks. Some are weighed down by anchors, others manifest with as both corpse and scavenger fish who eat the corpse, all Lil Badurs have some trait along these lines to represent their deathly nature. Storytelling Hints As part water Spirits Lil Badur are never found far from water. They are drawn to negative emotions for the contrast gives strength to their euphoria inducing Numina. When hunting they attack their victims with tempting hallucinations, everything from alluring women to glittering gold, before using Rapture to draw someone into the water where it uses Ensnare to cause the water itself to hold someone down. Lil Badur '''Rank:''' 2 '''Attributes:''' Power, 4, Finesse 5, Resistance: 3. '''Corpus:''' 8 '''Essence:''' 8 (15 Max) '''Willpower:''' 7 '''Initiative:''' 8 '''Defence:''' 5 '''Speed:''' 11 '''Size:''' 5 '''Influences:''' Drowning 2, Euphoria 1, Water 1. '''Numina:''' Ensnare, Greater Influence (Euphoria), Greater Influence (Water), Hallucinations, Rapture. '''Ban:''' Lil Badur cannot use any Numina on anyone who wears a life preserver or a life jacket. Sharur Sar Background It speaks of a more primitive time, a more savage time. A time where starvation and survival were just a hairs width apart, when life and death depended upon the hunt. It knows these things because it is Sharur Sar, the king of the hunt. Description It's enormous. That's the first thing anyone notices. Sharur Sar is Is over fifty meters long. It's jaw is wide enough to swallow people whole by the dozen and filled with rows of enormous teeth. It's body is sleek and streamlined with four flippers. It makes a terrifying figure ploughing through the shadowed depth, if you can see it then it can see you and it wants to eat you. Storytelling Hints When close to Sharur Sar you could almost mistake the surroundings for a barren for it's truly empty. The reason is simple, Sharur Sar has eaten everything. The king of the hunt lives a nomadic existence, a one Spirit mobile banquet. Yet there is more to Sharur Sar than the hunt. He is the last of his kind, presumingly he ate the others. Once he was the spirit of a flesh and blood creature but the svalbard plesiosaurs are all gone. He understands this and remembers the pain he felt when half of his great hunt ended. This has left him great respect for the sanctity of the hunt. Every spirit he devours he leaves with enough Essence to reform, other creatures gain the same respect: He leaves them with the minimum they need to limp home; this can be as harsh as killing should his prey have a way to return from the dead. In turn Sharur Sar expects his prey to understand the hunt, you run, you hide, you seek shelter, you only fight in a corner. Know your place in the hunt or Sharur Sar will express his... displeasure. Be warned Sharur Sar's charity has it's limits, he will at a minimum fill someone's health track with Lethal damage. While Sharur Sar allows people to survive after the hunt he won't end the hunt early to out of pity. There is one other thing that interests Sharur Sar aside from the hunt. Once long ago he ignored the world changing to focus on his feast. He daily lives with the consequences of that choice. If the world itself is threatened and the problem can be solved by eating someone or something then go to Sharur Sar but make sure it's worth the cost of asking such a dangerous predator to cross the gauntlet. Sharur Sar Rank: Estimated at 6 or 7. '''Attributes:''' Power, Incalculable, Finesse Incalculable, Resistance: Incalculable. '''Size:''' 30 '''Influences:''' Predation at an unknown level. '''Numina:''' (Those known about) Commune, Ghost-Eater (it is speculated that Sharur Shr's ability to eat Ghosts is part of a wider Anything-Eater Numina), Howl, Materialise, Material Vision, Pathfinder, Seek, Wilds Sense '''Ban:''' As the spirit of an extinct species Sharur Sar cannot bring himself to hurt a member of an endangered species. Spirits of an endangered species are fair game. Because of his enormous size Sharur Sar can't simply bite one person and avoid the animal she's carrying. Anyone holding, or even close to an endangered creature is safe. Sharur Sar guards knowledge of this ban carefully, Mr Lanun '''Quote:''' Human resources. What a delightful phrase. Human resources, Human resources... Background Mr Lanun awoke to find itself in a small pond. It was surrounded by tiny spirits: Spirits of water drops, spirits of algae, weather spirits of the tiny currents found within a a couple of feet of water. Few were even self aware and with no trouble at all Mr Lanun made himself their king. His pleasant existence was shattered the day they built a school on the lands ajacent to the pond. his eyes were opened to so much more and he decided he would quite like to conquer it. The grand invasion was slow in coming, hidden in his small pond Mr Lanun studied everything about the spirit politics and even the mortal politics before he made his move. As the students departed for the summer he took control of the original Mr Lanun, the teacher in charge of admissions and ever so carefully manipulated the new intake to remove the best athletes before “retiring” his body. This small change had a surprising effects on the local Hisil. The athletics Choir, long the dominant power, found it's superiority threatened. In the chaos and infighting Mr Lanun met in secret with minor powers, he took credit for the chaos and bargained: Be loyal to me and I will bend the Hisil to your pleasure. A Choir of party spirits, lust spirits, even beer spirits made the best offer and so Mr Lanun set to work. Selecting the correct intake, a quiet word here, occasionally encouraging a teacher to move on. Within three years a school renowned for it's athletic achievements had been reformed into the best party school in the state. The Spirits grew fat on Essence and Mr Lanun grew fat on their loyalty. His downfall was his own success. Having conquered his territory Mr Lanun set about investing in it. He commissioned public works, meaning he identified rich sources of Essence and told everyone to keep their hands away until he had formed several Loci. As his territory became more successful it became tempting, a neighbouring pack of Iron Masters attempted to take if for their own. The Uratha were unaccustomed to organised defences by the Spirits, meanwhile Mr Lanun was unaccustomed to combat. The Werewolves waged a bloody gorilla war, the two sides fighting each other to a bloody standstill. Swallowing their pride the Iron Masters realised that it was in their best interests to abandon all hopes of taking the Territory and focus instead on just removing the threat on their doorstep. Contacting other Iron Masters they identified several packs with young protégées looking to start a Pack and offered a plum territory for any new Pack in return for help pacifying it. In the face of this onslaught Mr Lanun was force to retreat. Defeated but not disheartened, the had worked, he just needed a little practice to perfect his technique. Appearance Mr Lanun picks hosts at the right place in whatever organisation he is trying to subvert. This more than anything else, in fact this alone, governs his appearance. His hosts can be of any gender or race but are usually at least moderately well off. When he can get away with it Mr Lanun favours tasteful suits. Where ever he goes Mr Lanun is followed by Mr Falamar and Missus Hannah two bodyguard Spirits (literally, they're Conceptual Spirits with the Influence Bodyguards) who resemble rough unformed men of clay stuffed into cheep suits. Storytelling Hints Mr Lanun's scheme for domination goes through several recognisable stages like clockwork. He starts with a single organisation with a strong internal culture and a rapid change in membership. It could be another school, a start up company expecting to double it's employee numbers, a real estate agent for a newly opened block of flats. The first stage is observation, he will not move until he knows about both the spirit politics and the mortal politics. The second stage his chaos, he takes a host and uses his knowledge of the mortal politics to collapse the established pecking order in the Hisil. After letting the chaos simmer for a while he moves to stage three: Bidding. Appearing before several groups of Spirits Mr Lanun essentially auctions the Hisil. In stage four he returns to the mortal world and uses his influence to set the winning bidders up as the kings of the local spirit world. Stage five is profit. Mr Lanun '''Attributes:''' Intelligence 7, Wits 2, Resolve 3, Strength 1, Dexterity 5, Stamina 2, Presence 2, Manipulation 4, Composure 3. '''Skills:''' Occult 3, Politics 3, Athletics 2 (Swim), Brawl 1 (Grapple), Stealth 4, Empathy 1, Intimidation 3 (Goons stare down), Persuasion 2, Subterfuge 3. '''Virtue:''' Charity. If you want to be a successful ruler you need loyalty from the masses. Mr Lanun always endeavours to see those loyal to him are richly rewarded. '''Vice:''' Greed. More territory. More control. More Essence. Mr Lanun is insatiable. '''Essence:''' 15 '''Willpower:''' 6 '''Defence:''' 2 '''Speed:''' 11 '''Size:''' 1 '''Corpus:''' 3 '''Aspects:''' Breach the Barrier, Preserve the Hollow Shell, Toxic Sting, Non Linear Thought Patterns, King's Right, Mindflayer, Strong Memory. '''Merits:''' Retainer 3, Retainer 3, Language 1 (English), add more as he progresses through his plans. Even weirder stuff